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Maddening: Inadequate subway service isn’t just an annoyance, it’s a threat to New York City’s economic future. Photo: Getty Images

Maddening: Inadequate subway service isn’t just an annoyance, it’s a threat to New York City’s economic future. (Getty Images)

New York is a city on the move. Each day, 8.5 million riders depend on the transit system to go about their lives, from going to work or school to shopping. And, for New York to be competitive as a global city, our subways and buses must offer mobility, reliability and efficiency. Right now, do you think they do? Neither do I.

Decaying infrastructure and inadequate service have become a constant source of frustration for New Yorkers. But the stakes are much higher; a deteriorating transit system is a direct threat to our economic future.

New York City can’t compete in the 21st-century economy if it remains dependent on a 20th-century transportation network. Right now, riders are paying more at the turnstiles but getting less for their dollars, despite the best efforts of dedicated transit workers.

Why? Because of the troubling financial situation at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

While the MTA has tried to stabilize its finances, it still faces a two-year budget gap of $5 billion. According to state Comptroller Tom DiNapoli, that’s due in large part to the recession: The MTA’s funding is primarily generated by highly elastic taxes — real-estate taxes and payroll taxes — and those collections fell far short of predictions.

Unfortunately, the MTA’s remedy is a Band-Aid, not a solution. Instead of more of the same, we must be bold, which is why I propose three ideas to help get the MTA’s fiscal house in order and restore fairness to its policies.

* Repeal the mobility payroll tax of 34 cents per $100 of payroll expenses. This has caused undue pressure on employers, especially small businesses and the growing legion of freelancers and the self-employed, all of whom are key to the city’s economic recovery.

* Restore the commuter tax and dedicate that revenue to the MTA. This makes sound fiscal and policy sense — and it’s also just plain fair. Riders who use the system to commute from New Jersey, Connecticut and Upstate should help pay for its costs. The burden shouldn’t disproportionately fall on those living in the five boroughs.

From 1966 to 1999, commuters did share the responsibility. For the suburbanite with a salary of $100,000 a year, the commuter tax was just $450 a year or .45 percent of wages. Looking ahead, we could direct up to $1 billion toward reducing the MTA deficit while ensuring that riders from all regions are contributing equally to the services they’re using.

* Impose a weight-based registration fee on private and commercial vehicles registered by the residents in the 12-county MTA region. This regional funding stream for mass transit (which I proposed as city comptroller) could provide more than $1 billion annually for the MTA while promoting energy independence and easing parking shortages.

Here’s how it works. A plausible fee structure would be an added $100 for vehicles weighing 2,300 pounds or less, plus $.09 for every pound of curb weight over 2,300. So, the extra annual registration fee for a Toyota Yaris (curb weight: 2,293 lbs., making it one of the lightest and most fuel-efficient cars on the road) would be $100. For a Lincoln Navigator (at a curb weight of 5,963 lbs., one of the heaviest and least-efficient cars on the road), the added fee would be $430.

Although raising local fees is never easy, if this plan were implemented, it would still be cheaper to own a car in New York than in such other cities as Boston, Denver and Los Angeles. It’s a measure we need to take.

Our economic future hinges on the health of our regional transit system. That’s why we must take bold steps today to provide riders with better service, create and maintain jobs for workers and ensure our city is competitive.